Thousands of Birmingham students hooked on exploits of library 'hermit'

Thousands of Birmingham students may have been hoaxed by a mystery “hermit” who claimed he lived in a campus library to win a £30,000 wager

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Thousands of Birmingham students may have been hoaxed by a mystery “hermit” who claimed he lived in a campus library to win a £30,000 wager.

The undergraduate said he spent six weeks camping out in the University of Birmingham’s library in return for seeing his debts cleared.

He claimed his wealthy brother pledged to pay off his £30,000 student loans if he completed the challenge and passed his final exams.

Writing on Facebook as UoB Library Hermit, the unidentified student said he finished the six-week stint earlier this month.

His page on the website has received more than 16,000 “likes” – but university insiders said they believed the whole thing had been a stunt.

The Mail was told the library had been scoured for the phantom bookworm and no-one spent all day inside the building, which is open around-the-clock during exams.

A spokesman said: “We operate a 24/7 library service during exam periods to provide students with a place they can revise in peace and safety.

“However, we encourage students to take regular breaks and discourage them from remaining in the building for long periods of time.”

Writing on his Facebook page, the “hermit” said: “For a number of reasons (mostly alcohol related), I am very, very, very close to failing my degree, and throwing away around 30 grand on my student loan.

“I called my older brother, who works for a top law firm, and explained to him my situation.

“While crying to him down the phone, he offered me a proposition.

“He has offered to pay off my entire studio loan if I pass my degree.”

But the student said he had to live “as a hermit in the library for the next six weeks” as a condition of the deal.

He said he was allowed to leave for just 45 minutes a day to shower and for the same period every second day to buy food – to be eaten in the library.

Despite questions over whether the story was real, the mystery undergraduate has become a star on campus – and even spawned imitators posing as him at Student Guild events.